The cases of a child injured with a knife in a metropolitan school and the murder in a shopping center in Sofia reveal a disturbing picture of deepening social problems related to children at risk. This was stated by Stefan Popov, head of the "Child Crime and Criminal Contingent" sector at the Sofia Police Department, in the "Interview in NOVA News".
Regarding the incident at school number 94 in the "Hristo Botev" neighborhood of the capital, in which a child was stabbed with a knife, inspector Popov specified that it was not a case of intentional violence.
„It is a child's game. We stated yesterday that the violence was not intentional“, he said.
The knife with which the incident occurred was not brought to the school by the injured child, but was brought in advance by another child who was not at school on the day of the incident for health reasons.
Chief Inspector Popov also commented on the case of the murder in a Sofia mall, committed by a minor, whose first manifestation of aggression dates back to 2022, when he was identified as a perpetrator of thefts.
“This child is from a family with a low social status and lives in very poor conditions. He has been leading a vagrant lifestyle for at least two years“, Popov said.
The boy was placed in a family-type accommodation center in the village of Lesnovo, but according to the police, there is no real effect from this measure. He has run away many times, and was caught twice in Pleven.
“All the prerequisites were there for this child to become a criminal. There is a serious problem with the parents - they do not seek help, do not cooperate, do not participate in the prevention process“, Popov emphasized.
Despite the individual serious cases, for the period from the beginning of the year to the present, compared to the same period in 2024, crimes have decreased by 20%, the expert pointed out.